


Ocean Eyes

by Hodgeheg002



Series: All The Best [4]
Category: Thunderbirds
Genre: Love them though, M/M, boys being dumbasses
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-14
Updated: 2020-11-21
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:27:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,498
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27011995
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hodgeheg002/pseuds/Hodgeheg002
Summary: John just wanted to make sure Alan had a friend at college. The rest was not part of his plan, but things are always taken to the extreme when it involves Brandon Berrenger.
Relationships: Alan Tracy/Brandon Berrenger
Series: All The Best [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1876195
Comments: 20
Kudos: 25





	1. Matchmaker

It had been a quirk of fate that had brought Alan and Brandon together, a random fluke of a computer programme responsible for the assignment of dorm rooms to undergraduate students. Technically most freshmen went into shared dorms with roommates, for better or for worse, but the Tracys were wealthy and Alan was nervous about having to share a room with someone he didn’t know. After all those years running from the Hood, the Mechanic- although Virgil had managed to convince the family of his turnaround- and the Chaos Crew, the idea of not knowing who would be sharing a room with him had caused Alan all sorts of anxiety, until it was pointed out that the family could always rent him his own apartment. That had sparked a whole different kind of anxiety, one born from growing up on an isolated Island and spending his high school years remote learning. In the end, a compromise had been struck; Alan would stay in the dorms for his first year, but in a single room. That had been a much more reassuring prospect, but he didn’t realise just how much residual apprehension he had been holding on to regarding who his fellow dorm mates would be until he had run into Brandon on the first night, Brandon’s key poised in the lock to the door opposite Alan’s. They’d frozen for a split second before breaking into nervous laughter, and an invitation to a party helped brush away any lingering awkwardness that the computer programme may have caused, each of them equally and secretly relieved that they at least knew one person.

Well. John knew what he was doing, after all. Call the hacking of the dorm assignments and putting Alan with the one person he would know in college a gift.

The party had been fun and lowkey, full of nervous freshmen trying to find their footing in a strange new place, and again Alan was grateful that Brandon was there. The two of them spent most of the night together, talking and laughing and learning more about each other in one evening than they had ever managed to glean from media exposure. Even if Alan had wanted to, he didn’t think he would have been able to pull his attention away from Brandon, finding himself captivated by him in a way that he had never experienced before. The last time they had met, Alan had been slightly dazzled by Brandon, even on a rescue and with his brothers observing from a very close distance. Now, in the absence of impending avalanches and danger, Alan was blinded. There was something about Brandon that Alan couldn’t quite put his finger on and Alan didn’t know if it was the alcohol that they shouldn’t technically have or the fact that Alan was relatively new to these sort of things that drew him to Brandon. Maybe it was purely physical, confined to his smile and curly hair and eyes that made Alan’s feel like he was melting, the way that Brandon laughed at his jokes and treated him as Alan Tracy, not Alan the International Rescue operative.

Okay. Maybe it was a bit more than physical.

The feeling wasn’t even confined to that night, so Alan couldn’t chalk it up to alcohol, and wasn’t that slightly terrifying. He would have loved to talk it all through with one of his brothers, but out of all of them Virgil and Scott were the best to ask for life advice, and neither of them were exactly displaying the pinnacle of relationships, what with Virgil  _ still  _ moping around since splitting up with Dave, and Scott was still sort of seeing that girl none of them were supposed to know about but had known about since Alan was seventeen. That just left John and Gordon, and whilst they could still give some advice, it was generally a lot more hit and miss as to how useful it would be. Plus, with Gordon, there was an exponentially increased chance of teasing that Alan really,  _ really  _ didn’t want to have to deal with.

That just left Grandma, Kayo or Brains. Kayo could be good for this sort of thing, but she was difficult to pin down and often gave her advice in the bluntest of manners, especially when it came to relationships; her outlook was very much if you’re into it, go for it. Alan was not ready for the rejection that could lead from following that suggestion. 

Alan didn’t want to think about going to Grandma or Brains.

There was one person though that Alan hadn’t immediately considered; his dad. He still wasn’t quite used to having his dad back, despite being home for over a year now, and there was always an acute pang of guilt that shot through him when he forgot that his dad was here now to ask questions. Scott, Grandma and his dad himself had tried to reassure him that it was okay, that Alan had been ten when Jeff had disappeared and it was only natural that he would gravitate towards his brothers for advice, it wasn’t something that would be held against him. Still, it made Alan squirm and he was determined to keep rebuilding the relationship between him and his father.

As it was, the talk with Jeff had helped. His father had actually spoken a lot of sense, helping Alan wade through his thoughts and feelings towards Brandon. Unfortunately for Alan, the conclusion was that he liked Brandon. Really, really liked him.

Alan wondered if Brandon would like him back.

  
  



	2. Halloween

Alan hadn’t really intended to go, but Gordon had threatened a long distance joint stream of horror movies, and whilst the films weren’t necessarily scary, they could still be horrifying and Alan really didn’t want to find out what Gordon had picked out this year. The result had been a somewhat reluctant acceptance of the party invite that someone- he suspected Yasmin- had stuck to his door, and one hastily cobbled together outfit later he was standing in a room lit by an entire plethora of Halloween themed fairy lights, clutching a cup of suspiciously bright red punch. He wasn’t entirely clear what was in it, only that it was sweet and strong and giving him something to do with his hands.

Alan couldn’t remember the last time he had properly celebrated Halloween. He had been eight when they had moved to the Island, but Halloween had been celebrated sparsely in the years before that, his brothers finding the memories associated with their mother’s favourite holiday difficult to overcome. There had been attempts, for sure; Alan had a few memories of his grandmother taking him round the streets trick or treating with Gordon, but then Gordon had declared it babyish and Alan had lost even that. Alan didn’t really mind, hadn’t even truly remembered what it was he was missing out on, and by the time he graduated to thunderbird three they more often than not spent Halloween out on rescues.

The music was loud and Alan couldn’t really hear what people were saying to him, the number of false vampire teeth people were wearing not helping. He found himself trapped by a table that was hosting an increasingly competitive game of beer pong when his attention was caught by a familiar costume. Alan blinked once, then twice, because it honestly looked as if his brother had rocked up wearing his uniform, but on closer inspection he saw that the shade of blonde hair was a little off, that the number of pouches on the baldric didn’t match his own.

The not-him caught sight of Alan and wove their way through the crowd and Alan realised with a jolt that it was Brandon, dressed as him.

Brandon had come to the party dressed as him.

Alan took a gulp of the over sweet punch, trying to calm his nerves.

“Hey Alan! Like my costume?”

“Um, sure.” Alan didn’t know what to say, couldn’t get his brain to work past the fact that Brandon, of all the possible things he could have worn, had chosen to go to the party as him. What did that  _ mean _ ? His brothers, in all their worldly wisdom, had utterly failed to pass on any information that could explain that.

Brandon’s smile dimmed just a little at Alan’s somewhat distracted answer, but he pushed on, determined to have an actual conversation with Alan. Even Brandon could admit that it would probably be a little strange to talk to someone who was dressed as you.

“So, you’re a… pirate?”

“Space pirate,” Alan clarified, tapping the oddly shaped helmet tucked under his arm. “It’s uh… yeah. I couldn’t really think of anything else.”

“Space pirates are cool.”

“They’re a pain in the ass and steal my astro boards,” Alan said suddenly, “but their outfits are easy to copy.”

“Oh. Astro boards?”

“Yeah. I’m great at surfing,” Alan said, managing a wicked grin that made Brandon’s breath hitch.

“I’ll have to get you on a snowboard sometime then.”

“Sounds fun. I’m not-“

“Heads up!” The shout was abrupt, and neither of them had time to react more than looking up before a football was hurtling towards the table and smacked into Brandon’s face. Brandon tipped forwards, hands cupping his face, and both he and Alan ignored the hurried, drunken apology.

“Are you okay?” Alan asked, abandoning the drink and make believe helmet to help Brandon.

“Yeah, I- oh  _ shit _ ,” Brandon said thickly, pulling his hands away to see the spill of blood flowing from his nose.

“Come on. Keep your head down, yeah like that.” Alan took Brandon by the elbow and led him to the door, snatching up a handful of napkins as he did so and helping Brandon position them so that they could stem the flow. “I have a medscanner back in my room, Virgil made me pack a full medkit.”

“Why?”

“Because my brothers are the most overprotective people you’ll ever meet, and he thought I’d be better off safe than sorry.”

“Ah. Okay then.”

“C’mon, let’s get you cleaned up.” Alan towed Brandon out of the door and down the corridor to the staircase, leading him up one flight to their own corridor and to his room. He could still hear the thumping of the music from the party below them, but it was muffled and seemed a whole world away. Alan dropped Brandon’s hand to unearth the medkit from the bottom of his wardrobe, trying not to think about how their hands had felt so natural together.

Brandon was already sitting on the bed when Alan returned, scanner in hand. There was silence as Alan worked, broken by the beep of the completed scan, and Alan huffed in relief.

“Not broken, just bleeding. Can I take a look?” Alan coaxed Brandon’s hand away to check, turning Brandon’s head gently from side to side to examine it more easily. Brandon’s eyes were locked on his and he felt transfixed by the gaze. “I think it’s stopped,” Alan managed eventually, hand dropping.

“Yeah? That’s good. Got blood on your uniform though, sorry about that.”

Alan snorted. “Don’t worry, makes it more authentic, especially for Halloween.”

“Get many call outs on Halloween?”

“Oh yeah, it’s a busy day.”

“Do the people who you rescue ask you to go on a date with them after?”

Alan’s mind once again gave up on him, the defence mechanism of babbling kicking in whilst his brain tried to process what Brandon was saying and the implications it held. “Well they tend to ask Scott more or Virgil, sometimes Gordon, but they never-“

“Alan,” Brandon interrupted, and Alan didn’t know if he was grateful or terrified for the interruption. “Do you want to go on a date with me?”

“...is that why you dressed up as me?”

“Had to get your attention somehow.”

“Okay.”

“Okay?”

“Okay I’ll go on a date with you.”

Brandon’s face split into a wide grin and he leant forward to press a small, soft kiss to the corner of Alan’s mouth. “Awesome. I’ll pick you up tomorrow afternoon. I’m gonna go get cleaned up now though.” 

He made to get up, but Alan caught his wrist, giving Brandon his own short, tentative kiss, not minding the blood that was still there. When he pulled back there was something unidentifiable about his expression, something that Brandon hadn’t seen before but made his toes curl.

“Tomorrow,” Alan confirmed with a small smile. Brandon nodded jerkily.

“Tomorrow.”

Alan released Brandon’s wrist and let him stand up, following him to the door and watching as he crossed the corridor to his own room. Brandon paused at the doorway, looking back to wink at Alan, and Alan decided that maybe Halloween was alright after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: a football to the nose really bloody hurts (in my case it was a UK football not an American football and was shortly followed by a basketball to the top of my head that my friend was passing to me. Was a painful lunchtime).


	3. The Beginning

The thing about college that Alan took advantage of the most was the fact that he had a weekly structure, which meant that he was guaranteed weekends free from lectures, which meant that he could sleep in. He loved the Island, loved his brothers and International Rescue and the camaraderie and closeness and adrenaline rushes those brought him, but there was something so satisfying about knowing that, when he went to bed on a Friday and Saturday night, he didn’t have to get up early the next day, that he could sleep and sleep for as long as he needed to, until the requirement for food and water drove him upright and into the kitchenette. Weekend mornings were sacred, dedicated to sleeping in until early afternoon, and Alan revelled in it.

Which was why, when someone knocked on his door at nine in the morning on the Sunday after Halloween, it was a somewhat dishevelled Alan who opened the door, squinting out into the hallway.

“Hey Alan,” came a voice that was way too cheery for that time of morning. “Ready for our date?”

“Date?” Alan asked as his brain rebooted and he realised that it was Brandon who had knocked on his door, because of  _ course  _ it was Brandon, the guy was always up and moving and apparently never slept.

“Yeah, from last night. You ready?”

“Um.” No, he most certainly was  _ not  _ ready, not whilst he was stood there in his sweatpants because Colorado was cold and an old tee shirt that was much too large and probably belonged originally to either Scott or Virgil, but Alan had been wearing his brother’s hand me downs all his life and he’d never quite kicked the habit, not when the laundry on the Island has the unfortunate tendency to end up in the wrong drawers.

Brandon wasn’t wearing pyjamas, though. He was wearing a jacket and a beanie and fuck, he was asking Alan on a date.

No, he was picking Alan  _ up  _ for a date.

“Give me five minutes?”

“Five?”   
  


“Maybe ten.”

“I’ll wait.”

Alan smiled, closing the door and crashing around his room, having the quickest shower of his  _ life _ which was impressive considering Gordon was his brother and had a tendency to prank him at the most inconvenient times. That, or John would pop up with a mission halfway through him washing his hair. 

Still, it was fifteen minutes later when Alan emerged from his room again, hopping as he tugged on a shoe, hair still damp and curling slightly at the edges. Brandon looked up from his phone, smiling and pushing off from the wall he was leaning against.

“Shall we?”

“Okay,” Alan agreed, slightly breathless. It took until the end of the hallway for his emotions to somewhat settle, his brain to unfreeze. “I hope that there’s breakfast, wherever we’re going.”

Brandon shot him a cocky grin, reaching out to tangle his fingers in Alan’s as if holding Alan’s hand was the most natural thing in the world. Alan’s brain started to short-circuit again, and he wondered if he was hyperventilating and if so whether it was obvious.

“Don’t worry, rocket boy, I’ve got you covered.”   
  


***

Brandon was right, Alan didn’t need to worry, because somehow Brandon had managed to find the  _ weirdest  _ cafe possible where the only food they sold was different types of breakfast cereal. Alan didn’t know when, or how, Brandon would have found a place like this, but it was colourful with boxes of cereals covering the shelves that wrapped all the way around the room, interspersed with framed posters of cartoon characters from cereal boxes, and small toys that came inside and where by then considered collectible items dangling from the ceiling. Alan’s eyes were huge as they sat down, looking around and trying to take everything in, until he became acutely aware of Brandon looking at him intensely. Alan dropped his gaze to the menu that was sitting on the tabletop, feeling his cheeks flood red with his blush, but when he managed to peek back up at Brandon it was to an expression of borderline wonder, rather than the smirk of amusement he had been expecting, and Alan’s breath caught in his throat.

Then someone was coming over to take their order and the spell was broken, Alan blinking back down at the menu again and choosing a cereal at random. He didn’t think he’d had it before, which was impressive considering the collection they had back on the Island, tacking on an order for a caramel mocha to the end and causing Brandon to raise an eyebrow.

“Didn’t take you for a sweet coffee kind of guy,” he commented when the person taking their orders had shuffled back to the counter, menus disappearing with them.

“Gotta wake up for rescues somehow,” Alan mumbled. “Virgil hates them though.”

“Oh? Is he a coffee purist then?”

“Oh  _ yeah _ .” There was a pause. “Gordon’s not allowed coffee though, like ever.”

“...from what you’ve mentioned about your brothers I can imagine not.”

“No, he wakes up at ungodly hours to swim anyway, he doesn’t even need it.”

“Oh? Is nine an ungodly hour then?”

“It is when it’s a Sunday and your date said afternoon,” Alan replied, matching the teasing tone. Brandon shrugged.

“I couldn’t wait.”

Alan’s cheeks dusted pink again, and something twisted in his stomach happily.

***

The rest of the day passed quickly, the breakfast quickly chasing away any lingering tiredness Alan may have had, although the two of them still managed to while away a couple of hours in the cafe. It didn’t take long before Alan relaxed into the conversation, the two of them managing to make each other laugh easily, the conversation flowing easily. Eventually, Brandon invited Alan along to help him run some errands in town, producing one of the most eclectic shopping lists that Alan had ever seen, but he agreed and so they paid and left the cafe, bundling up in their jackets once more. Brandon led Alan from shop to shop, pausing every so often to check the list on his phone, before tangling his fingers with Alan’s and tugging him along, talking all the while. Alan didn’t mind the chatter, too preoccupied with the sensation of Brandon’s hand in his and how  _ right  _ it felt, but Brandon had always been a tactile person and Alan was hesitant about reading too much into it, in case there wasn’t something  _ to  _ be read into it.

He didn’t need to worry though, because when they got back to their dorm building Brandon had paused, pulling Alan to a stop and dipping down to give Alan a searing kiss that left him breathless.

“I have to talk to Lemaire now,” Brandon said when they parted, Alan’s lips still tingling, “but thanks for letting me take you out today. You have a lecture break at three tomorrow, right?”

“Yeah,” Alan confirmed, still a little dumbstruck.

“Cool. I’ll catch up with you then.”

Before he could go, Alan lifted his head slightly, letting instinct finally take over, and pressed his lips to Brandon’s again, soft and sweet. There was a small surprised huff from Brandon when they parted, a slow smile spreading across his face full of something that Alan had never seen before but would do anything to see again.

“I’ll see you tomorrow then,” Alan said, stepping away from Brandon. 

“Yeah, tomorrow,” Brandon repeated, slightly dazed, and the two of them finally went their separate ways, the promise of tomorrow keeping them buoyed for the rest of the afternoon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, the cafe is based on two real places- an actual cereal cafe that is/was in Camden in London (I don’t know if it’s still there) which looked kinda cool but a bit expensive for me at the time, and a burger place in my hometown where the inside was covered with kids show memorabilia and cartoon characters.
> 
> This was supposed to be posted on Saturday but last week was rough and I didn’t actually finish it until yesterday 😅


	4. Morning Light

Brandon was not accustomed to waking up with someone else in his bed. Even considering the few hook-ups of his past- and really, there weren’t as many as the media liked to claim, he may have a daredevil personality but his work kept him fairly busy- they had never stayed the night, often retreating back to their own beds or sleeping bags to gloat about having slept with the famous- or infamous, depending on the journalist of choice- Brandon Berrenger. Brandon didn’t mind. They scratched an itch, he knew the score.

There was, however, something thrilling and dizzyingly intimate about waking up next to Alan though. Even if there had been nothing more than video games and the odd kiss shared between the two of them the night before, it had still been more exciting than anything Brandon had experienced before. He wondered which of them had fallen asleep first; he was guessing it was himself, judging by the way he had done something as unguarded as falling asleep in front of someone else. Brandon was left feeling strangely vulnerable, not that he could bring himself to care. The fact that Alan was still here, still dead to the world himself, suggested to Brandon that the willingness to expose such vulnerabilities was one that was reciprocated.

Brandon was quite content to lie there, drinking in his fill of Alan. There was something about Alan that dazzled Brandon, swept him up in an excitement and enthusiasm and energy that was so unique to Alan but so infectious. Now though, asleep and unguarded, Brandon was able to study Alan, the way his hair curled slightly at the end, the way his fingers twitched as he slept, even the way his eyelashes were sooty dark and oh so long.

Brandon wasn’t sure how long he spent lying there, gazing at him, but it was long enough for Alan to start shifting as he woke up, turning to bury his head into the pillow. Brandon bit back a smile, contenting himself with pressing a kiss to Alan’s temple. Alan managed a sleepy grunt.

“Good morning, sleepyhead,” Brandon said softly. Alan turned his head on the pillow to squint at Brandon.

“Mornin’,” he mumbled, voice heavy still with sleep. “What time’s it?”

“Not sure. Breakfast time, probably.”

“Mm. Breakfast,” Alan repeated, but his eyes slid shut again and he tucked himself closer to Brandon, clearly intending to go back to sleep again. Brandon wrapped his arms around Alan, pulling him in tight, and Alan nestled against him.

“It’s a good job it’s a weekend,” Brandon commented. Alan made some vague, sleepy noise in the back of his throat, breathing already evening out, and Brandon was extraordinarily glad that there was nowhere either of them needed to rush off to, and the two of them could just laze the day away snuggled together on his bed. 


	5. Third Date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is smut in this chapter. I really don’t want to increase the rating for this most likely one chapter but if that’s not your jam I’d stop reading when they leave the club.

Virgil’s words from earlier chased each other round and round in Alan’s brain for the rest of the day, and Alan wasn’t entirely sure what parts of the campus he had ended up showing to his brother. He knew, at some point, that he and Brandon would probably go further than the kisses and touches that had so far peppered their relationship, but there had been an unspoken agreement between the two of them that they would try and take things slow, that they wouldn’t rush into anything. Despite that evening only being their third official date, they had still spent an awful lot of time together the past two months simply by virtue of living opposite each other. It was impossible to avoid running into each other, not that they had even tried to avoid each other in the first place, and as a result Alan knew more about Brandon than people probably knew by the first date. He knew that Brandon hadn’t really had a proper relationship before, had flitted from person to person as he travelled around the world, experimenting and never really settling. Brandon in turn knew that Alan had never really had a proper relationship either, and certainly not a physical one. There had been a long distance thing when he had been in high school, but it hadn’t lasted with Alan’s hectic schedule and the fact that Alan lived in the middle of the Pacific and the other person had lived in San Francisco. The fact that the two of them knew this about each other, knew that what they were doing was something new and uncharted for both of them, had led to the understanding that things may be slower than expected.

That being said, Alan couldn’t help but think of the significance of the third date, of the significance of a third date with Brandon. Yes, they were taking the dating aspect of their relationship slow, but there was a definite intimacy and attraction that the two of them shared and Alan couldn’t help but conjure up images of the two of them together, of where the evening had the potential to take them. He really hoped that those thoughts hadn’t been too evident as he towed Virgil around, and by the time they had to go their separate ways, Alan all but shoved Virgil into the room his brother was staying in, managing a goodbye and a promise to meet up in the morning for breakfast before scurrying off back to his own dorm room to get ready for that evening. His thoughts wrapped themselves up in each other once more and before he knew it there was a knock at the door. Grabbing his jacket and keys, Alan shoved all the thoughts out of his mind and opened the door, Brandon leaning against the frame, the grin that made Alan melt a little on the inside fixed on his lips.

“Ready?”

“Yeah, sure, um let me just…” Alan trailed off, pulling his jacket on and pulling the door shut. Brandon waited patiently, catching Alan’s hand and tugging him down the corridor. 

“Have fun guys,” called a voice, and Brandon turned to see Yasmin, one of their other dorm mates, winking at them on her way to the small kitchenette.

“We will,” Brandon promised, smiling at Alan again and pulling him out of the building.

***

The bar was dark and small, full of low tables and sofas to lounge across when the dancing got too much. The bar itself stretched across one half of the room, the woodwork intricately carved not that it could be seen in the dim lighting. Tealights were dotted around on the tables in tall glass jars, adding to the atmosphere, and the music was loud and fast and unlike anything Alan had really listened to before, but none of that seemed to matter, not when Brandon’s hands were at his waist and the two of them were swaying in time to the music, trying to imitate the dancing of those around them. It was remarkably busy for a week night and Alan chalked it up to the crowd appearing to be predominantly students rather than locals, but that didn’t bother Alan too much, as far as he was concerned it was just him and Brandon and that was all that mattered. Eventually Brandon ducked out from Alan’s arms to get them some drinks, pressing a quick kiss to Alan’s lips and heading off to the bar. Alan settled himself at one of the tables, unable to tear his eyes away from Brandon’s retreating back. He watched as Brandon caught the attention of the bartender and Brandon must have been aware of his unabashed stare because he turned to flash another quick smile at Alan before returning his focus to the bartender. 

“Were you checking me out?” Brandon teased once he had returned to Alan, setting one of the beers down in front of him. Alan just shrugged.

“So what if I was?”

“Well, did you like what you saw?” Brandon asked, settling down close enough to Alan that he could smell Brandon’s cologne. Alan’s stomach seemed to have been replaced with butterflies and he felt slightly lightheaded, but the glint in Brandon’s eye stopped him from panicking completely.

“Yes,” Alan breathed. Brandon was so close to Alan that he could feel the heat from Brandon’s thigh, could see the light dusting of freckles across his nose that were only visible if you knew to look for them, could hear Brandon’s own hitch of breath.

“Show me,” Brandon said, and Alan closed the space between them, pressing his lips against Brandon’s. Alan had only intended the kiss to be light and soft, keeping with the teasing nature that had led to that moment, but then Brandon’s hand slid into his hair and Alan needed more than soft and sweet and chaste. His lips parted, his tongue brushing ever so gently over Brandon’s lip, and he could feel Brandon shiver before his lips parted as well and their tongues were sliding against each other, the kiss increasing in its intensity to almost unbearable levels. Alan shifted in his seat, unconsciously trying to press himself closer to Brandon, the urge for more, to completely drown himself in him becoming overwhelming as the kiss continued. Eventually Brandon pulled back, breaking the kiss only to scrape his teeth over Alan’s earlobe, relishing in the small, unbidden moan that Alan wasn’t quite able to hold back.

“Want to go back to mine?” Brandon asked and Alan nodded, not quite trusting himself to speak. Brandon kissed him again, short and full of promise, before leading Alan up and out of his seat, their drinks left forgotten on the table. 

The cab ride back to their dorm was short, just enough time for short kisses that served only to tease. It was late enough by the time they got back that there was hardly anyone around, not that either of them stopped to take notice. The journey up to Brandon’s room should have given Alan time to think, to over examine the situation he was in, but he could still taste Brandon on his tongue, could feel where teeth had grazed over his ear, and it was taking every ounce of his control to not demand a continuation of the kissing right there in the middle of the corridor. Finally,  _ finally _ they made it to Brandon’s room and Alan was suddenly at a loss. This was what he had wanted, what he had wanted since first locking eyes on Brandon that evening, but now that he was there Alan didn’t quite know what to do. He watched as Brandon took off his jacket, draping it over his desk chair before shucking off his shoes and settling down on the bed.

“Alan? You okay?”

“Yeah, I just- I don’t-”

“It’s okay, we don’t have to do anything if you’ve changed your mind.”

“No, it’s not  _ that _ , it’s just, I haven’t… I haven’t  _ done  _ this before, and I don’t… know.” 

“Alan,” Brandon said, crawling across the bed so that he could grab one of Alan’s hands. “It’s okay. We can take it slow, and if it’s too much we’ll just stop. Don’t stress about it.” He raised Alan’s hand up to press a kiss to it, and Alan managed a small smile. “We can just… make out, for a bit, see where it takes us.”

Alan didn’t know what to say, so he chose to say nothing, instead sitting on the bed tentatively, leaning in to kiss Brandon again. Brandon leant forwards, meeting him halfway, pressing his lips briefly to Alan’s before moving back to settle against the pillows again. Alan took his own shoes and jacket off, discarding them with Brandon’s, and lay down next to him on his side facing Brandon. Brandon shifted so that they were face to face and the two of them just lay there for a moment, cataloguing all the different features of their faces, before the draw to each other became too much and their lips were once again brushing against each other. This time they reached the intensity of the club much more quickly, Alan’s previous insecurities melting away with every moment. Brandon shifted, repositioning the two of them so that Alan was beneath him. Alan was more than happy to move with him, making room for Brandon to settle between his legs and press against Alan. Alan’s fingers skimmed over the top of Brandon’s tee-shirt, catching at the hem and desperately wanting more. Brandon pulled back slightly, a grin playing on his lips as he reached down and pulled his tee-shirt over his head. All Alan could do was stare, before his fingers reached up to trace the lines of Brandon’s chest. Brandon’s eye’s closed, exhaling shakily as Alan continued to trail his fingertips over Brandon ever so slowly, but when Alan replaced his fingers with his lips Brandon’s eyes flew open again and he ducked to catch Alan’s lips with his again. 

Alan’s fingers reached up instead to tangle in Brandon’s hair, pulling him closer as the kiss became more forceful, more rough. This time when they broke apart Alan was panting, but Brandon didn’t wait for him to gather his wits, instead trailing his lips and tongue down Alan’s neck and towards his collar bone, teeth sinking into flesh when he found the spot he had been searching for. Alan gasped, pressing Brandon’s face into that same spot. Brandon’s chuckle was lost against Alan’s skin, but he did tug at Alan’s own shirt.

“Ready to take this off?” he asked, sitting back as Alan reached for the hem and wriggled out of it, letting it drop off the bed. Much like Alan had done, Brandon seared a path down over Alan’s chest and abdominals, coming to a stop just above the waistband of Alan’s jeans. He rested his chin there, looking up at Alan, who was gazing back at Brandon with a look of desire that Brandon didn’t think he had ever seen before, and certainly hadn’t reciprocated until now.

“Do you trust me?” Brandon questioned, fingers dancing along the waistband. 

“Yes.”

“Okay. Just relax, let me know if you want to stop.” Brandon quickly undid the button of Alan’s jeans and unzipped the fly, coaxing Alan to lever his hips up enough for Brandon to drag down Alan’s jeans and underwear. He smiled at the evidence of Alan’s arousal, dropping a kiss to the top of his erection, before taking the tip into his mouth. Alan’s gasp was loud and immediate, his hands clenching the bed sheets as his brain tried to process the new sensations. He imagined that this must be what it felt like to be a rocket, if a rocket was sentient, a build up of pressure until it’s too much and it has to be released, propelling the rocket into space. Even if Alan wanted to, he didn’t think he would be able to tell Brandon to stop, the sensation of Brandon’s lips around him too much, and all he was able to do was gasp Brandon’s name in warning before it overwhelmed him and he felt as if he was exploding. The world seemed to white out around him, but as he came back to awareness he felt Brandon stroking his hair softly, pressing gentle kisses to his temple.

“Enjoy that?” he asked, his expression teetering on the edge of smug. 

“ _ Yes _ ,” Alan said emphatically, once his voice was working again. “What about you though?”

“Me?”

“Yeah, you,” Alan confirmed, kissing the tip of Brandon’s nose.

“Well, what sort of things were you thinking of?” 

Alan kissed him again, briefly, but just long enough for his hips to buck up into Brandon’s, his intentions clear.

“Are you sure? I don’t mind waiting, if it’s too much,” Brandon said, hyper aware of Alan’s relative naivety in this area, but also not wanting to question Alan too much. He knew that Alan had often been frustrated about being treated as the youngest, even if that’s what he was, and Brandon would hate to bring those insecurities in between the two of them.

“I’m sure,” Alan confirmed, reaching up to brush a couple of strands out of Brandon’s eyes where the curls had fallen. Brandon dipped down, kissing Alan long and hard, whilst he guided Alan’s hand to his own jeans, encouraging Alan to take them off. He’d be lying if he said he hadn’t hoped Alan would say yes; even if Alan was newer to the physical side of a relationship, he was still hot as hell, and Brandon had needed to take more than one cold shower after the two of them had hung out.

As soon as the jeans had been discarded somewhere on the floor with the rest of their clothing, things between the two of them became more frenzied. Brandon was as gentle and attentive as he could, peppering Alan with kisses when his ministrations seemed to be getting too much. Eventually, when Alan had relaxed as much as possible and Brandon had rolled on a condom, he eased himself into Alan, keeping an eye out for every hitched breath and wince, the pace slow and excruciating in the way it seemed to drag the pleasure. Alan’s hands gripped Brandon’s biceps, fingers tensing every so often as he got used to the sensation, but eventually he was able to let one hand go and reach up to pull Brandon’s head down, their lips crashing together in sloppy kisses in between pants and moans. Brandon’s arms trembled with the effort it was taking to keep things slow, not wanting to rush things or hurt Alan, but he hadn’t anticipated Alan’s own inclination to dictate the pace, gradually gaining confidence to give into his desires and bucking his hips into Brandon’s. This proved to be too much for Brandon, and he buried his face in Alan’s shoulder as his own orgasm rippled through him with a muffled shout, his hips stuttering before stilling. He paused for a moment, not able to move, before withdrawing and flopping onto his back beside Alan.

“Okay?” He asked eventually, turning his head on the pillow to look at Alan. Alan grinned back at him, pressing a kiss to Brandon’s shoulder.

“More than okay. You?”

“Oh, definitely.” Brandon reached over to his nightstand to grab a few tissues, cleaning the two of them up before chucking them and the used condom into the bin. He settled back on the bed again, pulling Alan into his arms, and the two of them started to drift lazily to sleep, spent and happy in each other’s arms.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The bar is based on a real place (again) where I live, it’s awesome, I used to go there a lot with my friends and they would try to teach me how to dance.
> 
> This chapter goes with chapter 10 of East of Eden which is about Virgil and The Mechanic. Technically this chapter should be posted on Monday but it’s my birthday and it was written over a month ago soooo here we are 😂


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